1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an optical card apparatus for recording and/or reproducing information by use of an optical card, and more particularly to an optical card apparatus capable of automatically receiving an inserted optical card, loading the card on a mount table in its normal position, determining whether or not the inserted card is a normal one, and monitoring operations from the insertion of the card to the loading thereof, thereby detecting any abnormalities or defects in the operations.
An optical card has a memory capacity which is about 3,000 times to 10,000 times greater than that of a magnetic card. Although it is not possible to rewrite data on the optical card, it has a large memory capacity, e.g. 1 to 2 M bytes, and therefore is widely applicable to bankbooks, portable maps, prepaid cards, etc.
The optical card has a number of parallel linear information tracks on a predetermined area on its surface. In an information recording/reproducing apparatus using the optical card as a recording medium, a light beam spot is moved over the surface of the optical card in the direction of an information track, relative to the optical card, thereby effecting information recording/reproduction on the tracks. After the beam spot has moved on the track by a predetermined distance, the beam spot is moved to cross the track, thereby shifting the beam spot to another target track.
Published Unexamined Japanese Patent Application (PUJPA) No. 62-92267 discloses an example of the optical card apparatus performing the above-stated operation. In this apparatus, an optical card is mounted on a mount table. The mount table is movable reciprocally in the direction of information tracks, and a head unit for forming a light beam spot on an information track on the card is movable in a direction crossing the track.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a conventional apparatus. In a card-receiving mechanism of this apparatus, a mount table 60 having on its surface a mounting portion 60a for mounting an optical card is movable reciprocally along a pair of guide members 80 and 81. The mount table 60 has a stopper 61 for determining the insertion position of the optical card, a light shield plate 62 for detecting the position of the mount table 60, and a pin 63 fixed at one side portion of the mount table 60. In the vicinity of an end portion of the guide member 81, there are provided a photocoupler 64, a hook lever 65, and a solenoid 66. The photocoupler 64 functions to detect the state in which the light shield plate 62 has reached the detection position. The hook lever 65 has an engaging portion 65a to be engaged with the upper surface of the pin 63, and is situated substantially on a level with the pin 63. The solenoid 66 drives the lever 65. In the vicinity of the guide member 80, there are provided rollers 67 and 68; a drive motor 69; a pulley 70 attached to a rotational shaft of the drive motor 69; a belt 71 passed over the pulley 70 and rollers 67 and 68; a movable plate 72 movable in a vertical direction in respect of the surface of the optical card; a pressing roller 73 rotatably supported on the side face of the movable plate 72 and situated above the roller 67, and a pressing roller 74 situated above the roller 68; extension springs 75 and 76, connected to the movable plate 72, for urging the movable plate 72 downwards, thereby urging the pressing rollers 73 and 74 on the rollers 67 and 68 via the belt 71; and sensors 77 and 78, situated above the horizontal running portion of the belt 71, for detecting the state in which the card passes below. An optical card insertion unit 79 is provided on one side of the guide members 80 and 81. The insertion unit 79 has an opening which corresponds substantially to the card mounting portion 60a of the mount table 60. The lower surface of the opening of the unit 79 is substantially on a level with the horizontal running portion of the belt 71.
The operation of the above apparatus will now be described.
The mount table 60 is situated such that the light shield plate 62 provided on the mount table 60 is situated at the detection position of the photocoupler 64. The pin 63 of mount table 60 engages with the engaging portion 65a of lever 65, thereby fixing the mount table 60. In this state, an optical card is inserted into the opening of the card insertion unit 79. When the end portion of the inserted optical card has reached the detection position of the sensor 77 and has been detected by the sensor 77, the drive motor 69 is actuated by the command from a control unit (not shown), and the belt 71 passed over the pulley 70 and rollers 67 and 68 is run. As the horizontal running portion of the belt 71 runs, the pressing rollers 73 and 74 rotate. In this state, the optical card is further inserted, and when the end portion of the card has reached the gap between the roller 67 and the pressing roller 73, the card is clamped between the horizontal running portion of the belt 71 and the pressing roller 73. Then, the card is guided by a guiding means (not shown). The card advances further, and its end portion passes through the gap between the roller 68 and the pressing roller 74 and reaches the card mounting portion 60a of mount table 60 which is on a level with the card. By the driving force of the motor 69 and the pulling force of the extension springs 75 and 76, the optical card advances further and, at last, the end portion of the card abuts on the stopper 61. At the same time, the rear end portion of the card reaches the detection position of the sensor 78 and is detected. Once the rear end portion of the card is detected, the solenoid 66 is actuated and the lever 65 is rotated. Then, the engagement of the engaging portion 65a and the pin 63 of mount table 60 is released and simultaneously the servo motor (not shown) is driven to run a belt (not shown). Thus, the mount table 60 fixed to the belt is moved forwards along the guide members 80 and 81.
When the movement of the mount table 60 is started, the movable plate 72 is moved upwards and fixed by a drive mechanism (not shown) against the force of the springs 75 and 76, thereby releasing the clamped state of a part of the optical card by means of the rollers 67 and 68 and pressing rollers 73 and 74. After the mount table 30 has moved forwards for a relatively short distance, the mount table 60 moves reciprocally for a predetermined distance, thereby enabling the optical head to perform an information recording/reproducing operation.
After the recording/reproducing operation is completed, the mount table 60 is moved backwards and the photocoupler 64 detects the state in which the light shield plate 62 provided on the mount table 60 has reached the detection position of the photocoupler 64. Simultaneously, the pin 63 attached to the mount table 60 engages with the lever 65, thereby fixing the mount table 60 once again. Thereafter, the upper fixed state of the movable plate 72 is released, and the portion of the card on the roller 68 is clamped by the roller 74 between the roller 74 and the belt 71 by the force of the extension springs 75 and 76. As has been stated above, once the light shield plate 62 reaches the detection position of the photocoupler 64 and is detected by the photocoupler 64, the drive motor 69 is rotated by the command from the controller (not shown) in the direction opposite to the direction of the insertion of the card. Thus, the horizontal running portion of the belt 71 is run in the opposite direction. The optical card clamped between the roller 68 (belt 71) and the pressing roller 7 is pulled from the mounting portion of mount table 60 by the drive force of the motor 69. While the optical card is pressed on the belt 71 by the pressing rollers 73 and 74, the end portion of the card is finally ejected from the opening of the insertion unit 79. Thus, the optical card can be pulled out of the apparatus. When the sensor 77 has detected the completion of the passing of the card, the drive motor 69 is stopped by the command from the control unit (not shown).
In the optical card apparatus having the above structure, the detection of the completion of the loading of the card onto the mount table is effected by detecting the rear end portion of the inserted card. Thus, when optical cards have various longitudinal lengths or lengths less than the standard values are employed and inserted, the exact detection is not possible and the normal operation of the apparatus cannot be performed. There is a concern that a non-standard card (e.g. a narrow one, a long one, a perforated one, a partially cut one, etc.), which can be inserted into the insertion unit and can be detected by the sensor for sensing the insertion thereof and start the operation of the card-receiving mechanism, may be received by the apparatus, and the completion of the insertion may be determined to start the next operation.